Getting back into RC flying (maybe)

[phaxtris]

The eflite turbo timber looks promising as well, maybe not as beginner friendly, but with that safe mode & as3x it could probably be tamed for a beginner, with lots of room to grow

Lots of options, but those would probably be my two choices for a beginner plane

Just don't try to start with a warbird

 

[PeterT]

Late to the conversation & way too much to type here. I'm a long time RC guy & front & center on this issue. Feel free to PM me & we can chat by phone if you like. The big picture is:

- Dec-22/Jan-23 the RC world kind of hit the wall when TC revoked the prior longstanding MAAC exemption. Depending on who you believe, some naughty boys were flying where they should not have been. MAAC (IMO) was complicit for incompetence, poor records management & lack of enforcement. Bottom line is TC basically said the organization violated the conditions, Finito.

- so all MAAC sanctioned fields had to re-apply for SOC one by one. They started from easier (uncontrolled airspace, no proximity to aerodromes...) to more difficult settings, some of which are still shut down & will never see the light of day IMO.

- at that point mainstream RC was essentially labelled as drones. It was a convenient & familiar category for TC but tremendously unfair to mainstream RC. The net result is in order to fly anything >250g you need to pass RPAS Basic exam, obey all RPAS restrictions, register the models with TC at 5$/per, fly <400'AGL at all times, line of site only, conduct a site survey every flying session, , compile a logbook blah,blah,blah).

- meanwhile typically larger RC planes (the vast majority) that easily exceed 400'AGL were essentially grounded. Contests, fun flys, events, anything where a Joe Public citizen may show up was cancelled because it was another level of paperwork approval (think like a drone flying over a football game, that's how they viewed it). So it was a very quiet & sh*tty summer. Must disgruntlement across the land. Many guys packing it in especially old timers. But MAAC promised good things were coming.

- time forward to literally last week. After lots of promises & rumoor's & forum squabbling (my bitterness creeping in now) MAAC indicated their big announcement. Details still pending so the knife continues to turn but - to return to flying >400'AGL requires Advanced Certificate, an observer, a re-review of MAAC SOC sites to approve any increased max altitude limit, blinky lights mounted on the wing. There may be some relaxations on MAAC sites but TBD. IOW I think we just got shoehorned into essentially what was Advanced drone requirements all along. Thanks... I guess? Supposedly MAAC membership discounts the ADV ground school $400? but not associated other dinger fees, exam, flight instructor... another couple hundred $?

I'll stop here before I start using potty-mouth words of what I really think of this mess. RC aviation as we knew it is a bygone dream (in Canada).

BTW I don't think Crown land or private land has anything to do with it. If <250g you can generally fly it with less restrictions than a few years ago. But >250g you are in RPAS domain & the app tells you where you can & cannot fly (outside of MAAC fields). Be aware that above Fed/Prov parks there may be city/muni restrictions no-fly zones.

 

[phaxtris]

Iirc advanced rpas only applies to certain commercially sold drones, I don't know that you can fly above 400' with an advanced rpas license and a "drone" not on the list

I have the basic rpas license, iirc the main stipulation is class g, class g is everywhere really, everything below 1200' and not in an aerodrome is g

The new drone regs really did hurt the hobby here and more so in the states, it's unfortunate that they lumped RC and drones together

You would need to look at a few charts before setting off, but you should be ok in crown so long as you are not near an aerodrome

Charts are easy to get, 18$ from nav Canada for vnc's/vta's or check for a pilot supply store near the airport, they normally have the most recent in stock

The weird thing are the logs they want you to keep, like a log book on a 2lb toy ? Serious? You need fa for logs on a basic ultralight, but you do on a 2lb toy, where is the logic

Just do the basic rpas license, it's easy, it'll make you legal, and let you know what transport Canada wants of you

 

[DavidR8]

The field that’s opened up near me requires the advanced RPAS license.

 

[phaxtris]

The field that’s opened up near me requires the advanced RPAS license.

I would say thanks but no thanks to that field if that's the case. Advanced rpas license is going to cost more than a few dollars, honestly sounds like gate keeping to me unless there is some kind of legitimate reason for needing an advanced license in that location

 

[DavidR8]

I would say thanks but no thanks to that field if that's the case. Advanced rpas license is going to cost more than a few dollars, honestly sounds like gate keeping to me unless there is some kind of legitimate reason for needing an advanced license in that location

It’s near an airport so maybe that’s why?

 

[phaxtris]

It’s near an airport so maybe that’s why?

Yea then controlled airspace, I wouldn't even bother, find some place not near an airport, that's a headache and a half

I don't know that you can get a flight authorization in controlled with a "drone" that's not on the advanced list anyhow, you would want to look into that if you were going to go forward

It's probably going to cost you close to 1000$ to complete that advanced by the time you go for the "flight review", imo not worth it, but it is your bucks

 

[DavidR8]

Yeah, the more I think about it the less enthusiastic I am. Back in 2012 when I stopped flying it was basically the same problem albeit different cause. No where to fly because the club had a mile long waiting list and there's basically no where local (less than an hour drive) that isn't private land.

 

[Susquatch]

Here is a tool to help define controlled airspace.

Drone site selection tool - National Research Council Canada

cnrc.canada.ca

 

[DavidR8]

The big red circles cover where I live

 

[PeterT]

Iirc advanced rpas only applies to certain commercially sold drones, I don't know that you can fly above 400' with an advanced rpas license and a "drone" not on the list

I have the basic rpas license, iirc the main stipulation is class g, class g is everywhere really, everything below 1200' and not in an aerodrome is g

The new drone regs really did hurt the hobby here and more so in the states, it's unfortunate that they lumped RC and drones together

You would need to look at a few charts before setting off, but you should be ok in crown so long as you are not near an aerodrome

Charts are easy to get, 18$ from nav Canada for vnc's/vta's or check for a pilot supply store near the airport, they normally have the most recent in stock

The weird thing are the logs they want you to keep, like a log book on a 2lb toy ? Serious? You need fa for logs on a basic ultralight, but you do on a 2lb toy, where is the logic

Just do the basic rpas license, it's easy, it'll make you legal, and let you know what transport Canada wants of you

Its all here in 2024 guide & if you did RPAS Basic it should be familiar territory

https://tc.canada.ca/sites/default/files/2024-03/aim-2024-1_rpa-e.pdf

Some initial clarifications. If your drone is sub 250g, that is called a micro RPA. They have different (generally less onerous) restrictions than >250g. Section 2.0 applies. That's why a lot of hobby shop drones are adamant about being under that weight.

If you are >250g, that is RPAS domain. See 3.2.13 Maximum Altitude & 3.2.14 Horizontal Distance
3.2.13 In uncontrolled airspace, RPAs are normally limited by regulation to a maximum altitude of 400 ft AGL or 100 ft above the tallest obstruction within 200 ft laterally (CAR 901.25). However, if a
pilot is operating under an SFOC—RPAS, the conditions of the SFOC may state a maximum altitude higher or lower than 400 ft (CAR 903.01). In controlled airspace, the maximum altitude permitted for a specific flight will be determined by the ANSP; in most cases, this will be NAV CANADA. The RPA pilot must keep the RPA in VLOS at all times, regardless of the altitude allowed by the ANSP. The maximum altitude possible in VLOS depends on several factors including the RPA’s visibility, colour, size, etc. The vast majority of small RPAs are not visible at more than 400 ft AGL in good weather conditions.

I'm less familiar with NavCan & other apps/resources because we are highly encouraged (by MAAC) to use RPAS Wilco. It ties to the exact same government data, somewhat different layer displays & flight planning features. They are steering WILCO towards mainstream RC guys flying off MAAC SOC fields. We tend to go to our familiar fields whereas drone folks are more nomadic. But RPAS is RPAS both fall under AIM.

I'm not sure where you are getting this Crown land business from, but if you have a link or something I'd like to read it. I did a Ctrl-F for those keywords & no hits in AIM. For example parks can fall under Crown as in physical lands and/or administered by & generally they are a no-fly zone without permissions
3.2.3.3 Drone Site Selection Tool <truncated>
The Drone Site Selection Tool can be found at < https://cnrc.canada.ca/en/drone-tool/ >. The tool is powered by a Google Earth engine that uses colour to identify areas that require additional caution or where RPA flights are prohibited according to a basic or advanced RPA operation category. Users should start by selecting the appropriate category of drone operations (i.e. basic or advanced). Areas filled with red are prohibited. Areas filled with yellow require additional caution due to other air traffic. Areas filled with orange require permission from NAV CANADA, Parks Canada, National Defence, or an airport operator.

Re flying in USA, I disagree. I bought an affiliate AMA membership for 40 USD (their equivalent to our MAAC). Passed a 26 question TRUST exam that actually pertained to RC. Paid 5$ for FAA license (which I already have, lasts 3 years). With this, as a foreigner, I can fly at any number of AMA sanctioned sites that already have the FAA altitude waiver. No logs, no flight plan. Now certain sites close to airports, aerodromes, military whatever are still restricted. My understanding is >90% of clubs are already compliant. They are steering towards some kind of electronic gadget ultimately, but this is the current situation. I have lots of friends happily flying in USA without the CARS restrictions.

 

[PeterT]

The big red circles cover where I live

Uhhm... You are pooched.

 

[DavidR8]

Uhhm... You are pooched.

Yup. That's my assessment of the situation.
Maybe I dodged another money sink right?

 

[PeterT]

Yes. I did my earnest best to help you maximize return on hobby investment by avoiding this particular money pit. Very sad what RC has turned into as of late, but it is what it is.

 

[DavidR8]

I appreciate all the sage advice @phaxtris @PeterT

 

[Susquatch]

Yup. That's my assessment of the situation.
Maybe I dodged another money sink right?

Nah, just a road trip up the island or a boat trip on the ocean every time you want to go flying......

What is the maximum size of boat you can use without a license/permit/registration/certificate?

 

[140mower]

What is the maximum size of boat you can use without a license/permit/registration/certificate?

..... remember those little plastic boats that came in a box of shreddies, where you blew up a balloon, and down the tub it went? ..... Yeah, not that big.... remember, this is BC and we have a lot of water, of course they added a license to it's use....

 

[phaxtris]

@PeterT Any of the pluz's in Alberta are fair game, they are crown land, just have to watch in fire fighting season, I think some R's pop up, bc has quite a bit more crown land that is not parks, but like David mentioned much of it is tree'd mountain terrain

@DavidR8 I would join a few of the bc drone groups on Facebook and start asking where to go flying, most of the conventional RC guys fly fields, drone guys fly everywhere, some of them should know some spots you can go

I wouldn't be to deterred yet, there are plenty of places to fly, they just aren't some manicured field with a convenient parking lot

 

[DavidR8]

..... remember those little plastic boats that came in a box of shreddies, where you blew up a balloon, and down the tub it went? ..... Yeah, not that big.... remember, this is BC and we have a lot of water, of course they added a license to it's use....

On the plus side I have my POC but my boating days are well behind me.

 

[DavidR8]

@PeterT Any of the pluz's in Alberta are fair game, they are crown land, just have to watch in fire fighting season, I think some R's pop up, bc has quite a bit more crown land that is not parks, but like David mentioned much of it is tree'd mountain terrain

@DavidR8 I would join a few of the bc drone groups on Facebook and start asking where to go flying, most of the conventional RC guys fly fields, drone guys fly everywhere, some of them should know some spots you can go

I wouldn't be to deterred yet, there are plenty of places to fly, they just aren't some manicured field with a convenient parking lot

Looks like the nearest spot is 45-60 mins away.